Breadcrumb

1. Home

2. Print 

3. Pdf 

4. Node 

5. Entity Print 

History of the NVAP Program

Last Modified: 

Print

In 1921, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) established the veterinary

accreditation program so private practitioners could assist Federal veterinarians in

controlling animal diseases. In 1992, APHIS established a national program. 

The National Veterinary Accreditation Program (NVAP) is managed nationally but

authorization is still on a State-by-State basis. Creating a national system has helped

APHIS standardize the accreditation procedures and requirements, allowing for more

uniform administration of the program.

Today’s National Veterinary Accreditation

Program

The enhancements that took place over the past 5 years in the NVAP were in the

works for many years. During the past 15 years this country has seen the incursion

of several foreign animal diseases (FADs). These have included outbreaks of

contagious equine metritis and equine piroplasmosis, epizootics of exotic Newcastle

disease and West Nile virus, cases of screwworm and monkey pox, and pandemics

of the influenza virus including H1N1. In the majority of these incursions, the FADs

have successfully been controlled with the accredited veterinarian being the first
line of defense against such catastrophic disease events.

Because of these FAD events several major animal health and veterinary medicine

organizations called for enhancements of the NVAP. The 2001 Animal Health

Safeguarding Review of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture

(NASDA) cited a need to "redesign and upgrade the National Veterinary

Accreditation Program" and suggested that "the accreditation program be the core

for emergency preparedness and the response plan."

In 2002 the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) published an article

entitled "New Directions for the National Veterinary Accreditation Program" which

turned out to be an accurate predictor of many of the elements included in the

current program.

Working with State and Federal agencies, major veterinary medical organizations

such as the United States Animal Health Association and AVMA, and academic

organizations such as the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges,

APHIS developed the elements currently in the NVAP using the federal rule making

process.

The Final Rule was published on December 9, 2009 and provides uniform, national

education for veterinarians seeking initial accreditation Initial Accreditation Training

(IAT). Since July 1, 2010, IAT has served as the mandatory precursor to the

Orientation Program offered in each State for accreditation. The Final Rule also

established two accreditation categories (Category I and Category II) in place of the

single category, it added requirements for supplemental training and renewal of

accreditation every three years, and provides for accreditation specialization.

Contact Us

NVAP Coordinators

For questions about NVAP, contact your local NVAP Coordinator by selecting your

State or Territory from the dropdown menu below or visit More Information About

NVAP.

- Select a State - ▾

Loading...
All Contacts

Export requirements frequently change. Obtain current export requirements for live

animals or animal products before each shipment.